One of the most prevalent of what are often (erroneously) referred to `victimless` crimes is cargo theft. Worldwide industry theft losses for cargo theft in 1995 were approximately $470 billion, and an additional $400 billion was lost to a multitude of cunning and deceptive fraud schemes. Between hijackings and internal fraud, the cost to business has reached such epidemic proportions, that the insurance industry has estimated that cargo theft losses now account for $150 of the retail price of every personal computer. As a consequence, insurance premiums and deductibles are rising at an alarming rate. While insurance company payouts can replace stolen goods, the loss of business from clients forced to buy from someone else might never be replaced. Also, even though enforcement agencies have begun forming task forces to deal with the problem, most of their responses have been reactive rather than proactive; law enforcement and private industry have realized that they must work together to solve the problem.
For this purpose, a very basic procedure has been to simply lock the doors of cargo containers and vehicles; however, such locking of truck/cargo carriers has not provided adequate protection, as industry experts point out as much as 80% of cargo theft is the result of insiders with keys to the truck/carrier storage units. It has been concluded that the only effective measure to secure cargo is to employ a measure that will assure that the truck or carried storage unit cannot be opened between its departure location and its intended destination.
One proposal to address this problem, described in the U.S. Pat. to Long, No. 5,648,763, is to equip the cargo container with a geographical position detection unit (such as a Global Positioning System (GPS)-based unit) that is directly connected to the locking mechanism for the container. The geographical position detection unit functions to maintain the security access control system for the container (a solenoid-driven lock) in a locked condition, until it detects that the container has arrived at its intended destination. At this point, the geographical position detection unit issues an unlock signal to the locking mechanism and allow access to the container.
A fundamental shortcoming with this approach is the fact that the security access control system and its associated geographical position detection equipment (such as a Global Positioning System (GPS)-based unit), which may typically be installed in or adjacent to the cab of a truck, or within the container proper where the cargo is stored, is directly linked with the hardware of the mechanical locking unit for the cargo container doors at the rear of the truck.
The fact that the two are directly linked through or along the confines of the truck where cargo is stored, and the substantial physical separation therebetween creates the potential for damage or compromise of the control link between the security access control unit and the lock. Moreover, all of the security access control information, including the critical geographical location information, is programmed into the security access control system. Since the security access control system is resident in equipment permanently installed in the container/vehicle, programming the geographical location information must be physically carried out `in the truck`.
Advantageously, the invention described in the above-referenced co-pending '467 application substantially improves upon this patented system--providing additional security and functionality--by means of a programmable electronic lock, which can be unlocked only by an electronic key that has been programmed with geographical location data representative of the destination site of the cargo container. Preferably, the electronic lock and key are of the type described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,337,588 and 5,625,349 (hereinafter referred to as the '588 and '349 patents, respectively), each containing its own individually programmable control processor, and employing encrypted, scrambled (opto-electronic) communications for increased security.
Once the mobile platform has arrived at its destination site, the previously programmed electronic key is inserted into a location verification comparator unit, such as one employing a GPS receiver for the mobile platform. If the two sets of geographical location data match, the key is enabled for a prescribed interval of time. Otherwise the key remains disabled and the contents of the container remain secure. The key may then be inserted into the programmable electronic lock, which reads the key to determine whether it has been enabled. If the key is enabled, the lock can be unlocked and thereby provide access to the container.
Unfortunately, transportation industry-standard cargo door lock assemblies, such as a standard J-hook assembly for a roll-up rear cargo door, as a non-limiting example, are not configured to accommodate an electronic lock, including that described in the above-referenced '588 and '349 patents. As a consequence, either a completely new locking mechanism design, or some form of retrofit, is required. Because of the generally universal acceptance by and familiarity of transportation personnel with currently employed cargo door lock assemblies, a retrofit of the locking assemblies currently in use would be preferred. In doing so however, care must be taken to protect the electronic components of the lock from impact, moisture and foreign matter that is present both outside and inside the container.